Viva La Vida
by Chocpen
Summary: Princess Makoto has read many stories in her lifetime, and in each one the charming prince was always the love. Although she was never in love, she knew that her arranged marriage was like those stories and there wasn't a very happy ending.But what will Makoto do if she had a chance to change her own fairy tale around?
1. Prologue

Makoto Tachibana was the first princess of the Iwatobi Kingdom. She was polite, caring and perfectly beautiful among the royals. It wasn't shocking that the princess was gorgeous; all Tachibana women were at the top of the breeding chain. All were perfectly shaped and groomed and had an exceptional family enrichment. That was why the Tachibana family had a long line of arranged marriages. Of course the family was always fair toward their children and only the first child was arranged to wed the last of another royal family.

And that was why Makoto gazed worriedly as her mother that took the pen and crossed the line from her picture to the other. "Then it is settled; our eldest daughter, Makoto, will marry your youngest son, Haruka." Makoto wanted to interject, but didn't know what to counter act with. She glanced at her childhood friend and pulled a smile when he looked back at her. She didn't have a real reason to deny the marriage; Haru was Makoto's best friend and they know a lot of one another. It was just something about wearing his ring and holding his hand as they walked down the stairs, smiling to the cheering crowd, that made her feel this wasn't real. Like it was just a story.

And she was only thirteen; she didn't know what she wanted out of life. Maybe she was just overacting a little, maybe she'd get used to Haruka as a husband. Maybe she'll learn to love him like a husband and not a brother. But it didn't get her to sleep at night so she decided to sneak down to the kitchen when the clock hit twelve to get away from this just for a bit. To take a little pause from this story. She tip toed slowly down the steps and looked around cautiously as she turned the knob and cringed at the creaking sound of the door.

She took a peek through the ajar door and waited a moment before slipping in and tip toeing further unto the wooden floors. She took a glance from right to left as she stuck her hand in the cabinet and pulled out a jar of jam. She sighed when she realized she didn't bring a spoon and then just decided she'd use her own tips as she slid the lid off. She almost wanted to lick her lips as she gazed at the blue and purple liquid that was almost spilling out of the metal guard. All the meals at the dinner table were so plain and unsettling she wondered why anybody smiled when they bit into the old looking meat.

"It isn't good manners to eat with your fingers." Makoto fumbled with the jar and then held it tight, shooting her head at the source. She felt the jam almost spilling out as she squeezed it tight and blinked at kitchen boy that looked just as surprised. "..I didn't scare you, did I?"he added quickly and tilted his head, his eyes going up and down and over her, trying to check if she had any injuries of some sort. She pursed her lips and furrowed her brows, staring at the boy. She hasn't met a lot of boys in her life; other than Haruka, her father and her little baby brother, she didn't know how to act. She just stood there, staring at him with a heavy weight on her chest.

"I..what are you doing here?"she asked in a small voice and ticked on the jar. He smirked and stared with bright eyes. They were red in that light, she noted. "I can ask you the same thing. Y'know, princesses shouldn't be out this late at night; dragons might come out and gobble you up." Makoto couldn't help but grin at that and fumbled with the jar a bit. "..I'll keep that in mind.."she whispered and didn't know what else to say when she felt her voice getting smaller in her throat. He took a glance at the jar in her arms and looked around the kitchen behind him.

"I can get you a spoon,"he glanced at her as she looked up at him, "but then you need to get back in bed or else we're both gonna be in big trouble." Makoto nodded and followed behind him as he rummaged through the box of utensils. The boy took her to her room and hurried her to climb in bed when they heard footsteps. When he turned to go out of the hallway, she tugged at his sleeve and twisted her lips when he looked back. "What..what's your name?"she squeaked and he grinned. "My name's Rin. Rin Matsuoka. Goodnight, princess Makoto." She didn't believe it when he turned to leave. Like it was just a dream when she woke up the next morning, holding an empty jar.

Makoto Tachibana was the first princess of the Iwatobi Kingdom. She grew up to be a beautiful, talented and caring princess for her kingdom. Everyone adored her and all the girls wanted to be her as she linked arms with the charming prince Haruka. With her busy and pressuring schedule as a princess and the wife-to-be, Makoto forgot about the boy in the kitchen that helped to find her spoon. She forgot about the nights after that encounter down in the kitchen, chatting with the boy about his biggest dreams and fairy tales. She forgot about the supportive servant boy that always called her princess when she felt down. She almost forgot that he wasn't just a little princess's childhood imagination.

Almost.


	2. Chapter 1

An unnamed knight that was nicknamed the Golden Rider, was the hero of Iwatobi. He was more of a silent hero, though. He was never awarded with medals or was sent out to war or had a cent to his name. What he did, though, was help the people in the Kingdom's villages and not just the upper class men. Fires, robberies and just to put food on their plates was his top priorities.

He wasn't a self-declared knight, either. He used to be the king's one and only trustworthy knight. But the king's mind became ill. Very ill and very untrustworthy. He asked his knight to turn against his own people and kill them all one for one. The knight refused. And because of this refusal, he was banished from the castle. But that did not stop him to protect his people from the ill king.

But one day, the knight met the king's wife. The two fell madly in love but kept it a secret from the ill king. Then one day, the queen told the knight that she was carrying his child and the knight declared that he and her would run away from the king. But, the day before the two ran away, the knight disappeared. The queen was so upset that she wouldn't dare look at his child and gave him away before the ill king ever noticed. Even if the son had a curse.

"What was his curse? What was his curse?"the boy insisted, shaking his sister's arm. The brunette chuckled at the younger's excitement even if he knew the answer already. But she was just as excited even if she memorised the story by heart. It was her childhood favourite, after all. "He could turn into a strong, tall and built wolf. Most people would say it's a curse, but it's actually a great gift for he could protect an entire kingdom with his strength and gentle heart." Like his father, the child disappeared and no one bothered to find him. But some say that the child is somewhere out there, turning into a gentle beast that protects the people to carry on his lost father's legacy.

"Makoto,"a beckoning voice bellowed. The brunette quickly shut the book and her brother hurried her to climb under his bed. The servant threw the door wide open and shot her head sharply to the young royal. "Prince Ren, have you seen your sister anywhere?" The younger shook his head and the servant sighed. "Her mother is looking for her, if you see her tell her to come to the Art's room immediately." The boy nodded as the servant clicked the door behind her.

The boy crept to the corner of his bed and stuck his head under the mattress. "Mom's gonna kill you,"he grinned and Makoto sighed. "Yeah, she's been doing that a lot recently."

The arranged marriage has gone from years of waiting to a few months and Makoto and Haruka's parents were more eager than they were. Makoto still saw Haruka to be her greatest childhood friend, but the thought of a husband was still far from her mind. And she knew that his heart belonged to another, even if he didn't say it. She could see it in the way he would looked at the other and she was envious. She was never truly in love and she slowly stopped believing if she ever will be. When she mentioned this to her mother, it made the queen sigh in tiresome effort.

"Now, Makoto, you know that being a princess isn't just about doing whatever you please. It's also about-" "-responsibility, I know,"the princess sighed as the servant sewed the pieces together in a tight grip. Her mother walked around her and then caressed the girl's cheek. "Makoto, I know this must be hard for you, but the kingdom comes first. We're not expecting you to fall madly in love with Haruka, but we do expect you to do your duty for your kingdom,"she swat the non-existent dust off her shoulder. "And besides, Haruka is like a prince charming. I'm sure he'll be a perfect husband for you."

Makoto rolled her eyes and she smoothed the dress over her hips. "But..but I don't want to have a prince charming,"she slipped and covered her mouth when her mother looked at her with a questioning expression. "What? Who wouldn't want a prince charming?"the servant asked, trying to distract the queen from a ripped fabric. "Well, um,"Makoto started, but didn't know what to say. She always wanted to say this, but didn't exactly know how to put it in words.

"A prince charming seems so cliché and overdone to me. I want someone who isn't obvious for a fairy tale romance,"she glanced at her mother that furrowed her brow at her. "I want..I want a big bad wolf to be the princess's love for once,"she spilled and felt her face heat up in embarrassment as the servants giggled and felt worse when her mother scolded them. Her mother told her she should stop reading her brother little childish stories and when she wanted to speak up, her mother dismissed her to her room.

Makoto might have grown up to be a loyal princess to her kingdom, but she wondered sometimes why she even bothered. Her little sister, Ran, seemed more eager for a marriage than she was and she was the same age Makoto was when she was arranged to wed. It was unfair, Makoto would think. But she was an adult now, she had responsibilities. There wasn't time for childhood fantasies...or was there..?

It was getting dark and the princess told herself that she wasn't going to skip it tonight. She told herself that this was her one day and she was going to take it before her father changed his mind. Makoto pursed her lips as she felt the walls as she stepped down the stairs. She felt for the "borrowed" keys and unlocked the door slowly. She glanced around as she slid out the door and cautiously tip toed to the stables. She hushed the bold creatures and caressed the tallest one's hair and smiled up at the horse.

She reminded herself that the horse was sensitive and kept brushing it's hair with her fingers. She felt her heart fell as she stepped on a piece of salt lick. She reached out to grab the horse's hair but the creature ran from fright and she fell back fast. She shut her eyes tight and prayed that her head wouldn't bleed too much against the unclean grass. But she took a breath when she felt steady and was confused by the feeling of air beneath her and not a hard damp ground.

She took a moment to rise her head up to the strange support and felt her heart race as she looked into a bright red pair of eyes. "Hey,"the voice was deep and husky and Makoto didn't understand why her face felt hot. She couldn't believe who was smiling down at her and only believed that it must have been an illusion from the concussion she got from falling on her skull. "Y'know, princesses shouldn't be out this late,"he flashed his teeth and Makoto felt her heart racing faster, "dragons might come out and gobble you up."


	3. Chapter 2

A single candle light's bright colours cascaded across the page. The girl traced her finger across the lines, trying to find the exact place where they left off the night before. The boy shuffled a bit, placing his chin on her shoulder and taking a cautious movement with the candle. She glanced at the boy and felt her cheeks tint, but just turned her view on the worn out book. The pages were lop-sided as she turned them and there were stains in each corner. "I don't understand why she has to kill her,"Rin whispered and Makoto rose her brow. "Well,"Makoto blinked at the book and twisted her lips. "The queen is obsessed about looks since that was what gave her the crown. If Snow White's beauty finds her a husband, then she'll rule and the queen will lose her power,"Makoto explained and pursed her lips when the boy leaned further into her shoulder.

"Then why kill her? Why can't she just make her ugly? She has magic, right? Why not just use it to make her ugly and then use her as a slave like she always has?"he questioned. The girl placed her finger in front of her lips and hushed him when they heard steps above. They sat under the stairs and they knew it was long past the princess's bedtime. They hesitated a moment when the maid stepped up to the laundry room and crouched when they saw a shadow across the walls. "You can't change the story,"the girl whispered. "It's just how it goes,"she said under her breath and felt a tug when the boy walked over to the little counter table.

"Yes,"he replied, "but we _can_ change the story." She tilted her head and furrowed her brow at the pen he held in his hand. "How,"she mumbled and the boy handed the candle to her as she handed the book to him. He fiddled with the pen and then slowly ripped the last few pages. The girl wanted to stop the boy, but reminded herself that there were several other copies of the book that lay around the library. "See,"he whispered, "we can rewrite the story. We can remove these pages," you already have, she wanted to say, "and replace them with our own pages. We can write our own story." The girl grinned at the boy's enthusiastic smile. "And all it takes,"she poked the pen he held, "is a pen and paper?" He nodded and the girl quickly pressed the paper in between her fingers.

That was a memory that whispered and mumbled in her mind as she gazed at the red head that ruffled her horse's mane. She pressed her hand on the bold creature's neck and fidgeted a bit on it's back. She didn't say anything when he walked around the horse and then passed her, but she wanted to. There were many things that bubbled and squeaked and chimed in the back of her head. She could hear them, but she didn't understand them. He wasn't supposed to exist, she noted. Well, he did, of course, but all she could understand clearly about him was that he was in her childhood. Her childhood imagination, to be exact.

"Um,"she mumbled and the boy looked over his shoulder at her. He was so much different from what she remembered. So much taller, so much more stronger and his face was structured. He wasn't a boy anymore; he was a man. And she was a woman. So why does she still fidget and fluster when she's around him? They weren't children. But she didn't feel like an adult around him. "Yes, Makoto?" She felt a tug when he didn't call her 'princess' but didn't say anything. It would've been very childish if she complained, but she didn't like it either. "Rin,"she felt a tingle saying his name, "when did you come back?" He stood there and stared at her for a moment, and it didn't make her less flustered. "A while back,"he answered. She nodded and didn't say further as she the built animal strode out of the stables.

She shuffled her shoulders as she felt hands shaking her arm. "Onee-chan! Onee-chan! He arrived today!"the little girl chirped and the brunette moaned. "Who has arrived?"she groaned and pulled the blanket over her shoulders. The little girl shook her sister. "The knight! The knight that Papa has hired to guard you!" "Not that I can't do that myself," she heard the familiar voice and shot her head to the dark head boy. "Haru,"she whispered and smiled.

She sat up slowly and placed an arm around her sister's shoulder as her friend sat on the mattress. "Mako,"he greeted and slid a strand of hair behind her ear. "Did you arrive this morning?"she asked and the younger nodded. "Oh yes, yes he did Onee-chan. And there's another person that came this morning." "I know,"the brunette patted the girl's head, "the knight. You told me." Well, actually her mother told her, yesterday.

Her mother told her that her father has assigned a knight to protect her. In the past in many other royal weddings, people have captured the bride and held her for ransom. The bride was always captured for without her there won't be any children to pass on the royalty. This time, though, the Tachibana family planned ahead and assigned the most recommended knight in the Samezuka Academy. Makoto wasn't against the idea, but she wished she'd known about it sooner. Her parents always did let her know at the last minute. The same with her engagement.

"I don't like him,"Haru said simply as she took her hand down the stairs. She smiled and hooked her arm in his. "You said you didn't like Rei either, but you two got to be friends,"she shrugged and ticked her fingers on his arm. He rolled his eyes and stared at her for a moment. She was used to his stare and just kept her view on the tall golden doors. "You honestly don't know who your knight is?" She shook her head lightly and looked up at him curiously. He smirked and turned his head. She took that as a sign of 'if you don't know then I don't either'. But she knew he knew but didn't want to waste time on asking him. He'd probably tease her if she asked. Not with words, but she knew he would with his blank expression.

The Russian violet haired girl waved at the princess as the two stepped closer. "Ah, Princess Makoto, good morning,"the servant greeted and the princess replied. Haruka didn't say anything and the two were used to his silence. The brunette peeked over the violet's shoulder and blinked at the tall figure that didn't wear his uniform. The violet looked over as well and tugged the man's sleeve. "Princess, I would like to introduce you to your royal guard," the brunette felt her heart sank as the scarlet haired man turned to her, "Rin Matsuoka."


End file.
